A/N 10/27/2013 EDIT: You know the drill, blah blah blah...
Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah...
Chapter 7
Kurt had slept, restlessly; half a dozen and a dozen times, he woke up with a jolt to the perceived sounds of danger coming his way. Sometimes it was nothing; a few times it was someone bringing him food. The first two times it was the white haired woman, bringing a large tray that held a large cup of water and a plate of food, still hot and steaming from the stove. She offered a few kind words, but Kurt simply crouched where he was, silently waiting until she went away, casting sad glances back over her shoulder. The third time it was the Wolverine who brought the food; Kurt felt no safety in his presence but luckily the older man didn't stay long. He simply set the food down within reach, gave the boy a warning look, and left immediately afterwards.
As much as Kurt wanted to, he couldn't eat the food. He was too nervous and worried. He tried to drink some water, at least, but even that made him feel sick to his stomach. When the white haired woman came to take the tableware back to the kitchen to be washed, she was saddened and more than a little worried at how the food had been clearly untouched. But there was nothing she could do about it.
In between times, Kurt slept as best he could, wearied and hopeless. There wasn't anything else he could do. He tossed and turned underneath the blankets, muttering in his sleep, pleading with the people in his dreams to help him. They simply ignored him, or else they laughed at him like it was the most entertaining thing in the world. Such a sleep was no sleep at all, and every time he woke up he still felt bone tired.
The last time he woke up, his stomach was aching in hunger, too uncomfortable for him to go back to sleep - not that he was comfortable to begin with, considering what sort of emotional pressure he was putting himself under.
With a wearied sound that was half moan and more sob, Kurt covered his face with his hands and curled up into a little ball, still almost entirely hidden under the blankets. His chest felt tight, as if the weight of the world was pressing down upon him. He knew he wouldn't stiffen up from his mother's embrace now, if she were here. But she wasn't, and that madman Xavier could be back at any moment. He had scared away the cripple once, or so he told himself. He wasn't sure if he could do something like that again, and he knew that Xavier hadn't really been scared at all. Surprised maybe, but not scared.
What would happen to him now? Waiting and not knowing what to expect was twisting his insides into knots. His half waking dreams didn't help him feel any better. A few tears dampened the fur on Kurt's face, and then a few more. Strict though she was, his mother had always protected him, shielding him from the angry eyes of the world and fighting back like only a mother can. Now she was as far away as the moon, it seemed; he was helpless and alone, trapped in a mansion with any number of psychotic killers. A sob rose unbidden in his throat and sent a shudder through his tired body. He knew it was only a matter of time before they did something horrible to him, brainwash him and torture him and whatever worse things the X-Men did to their enemies here…
Kurt's head jerked up, his heart pounding in fear. Most other people wouldn't have heard anything just yet, but Kurt's sensitive ears picked up the sound of voices past the solid walls of his prison, distant but getting closer. He could hear every word that was spoken as clearly as if he were standing next to the speaker. He swallowed heavily and braced himself for what was sure to come, listening in silence.
"Are you sure about this, Rogue? I mean, that thing is dangerous! I heard it tried to rip out the Professor's throat last night!" Kurt recognized the voice of the brunette girl called Shadowcat as she talked worriedly to someone.
"He has a gender, you know." The clearly annoyed response came from the other person, a Southern twang that Kurt recognized as the girl with white bangs.
"Who, the Professor? Whatever. It's still dangerous." The brunette girl insisted. The voices stopped just outside the thick metal door of the room that held the imprisoned Kurt.
"Well? Ya gonna let us in or what?" Came the white-bangs girl's voice again, still annoyed.
Surely she wasn't talking to Kurt, was she? Kurt's breathing came in unsteady gasps; he needed a plan, and fast. He glanced desperately around the room, but he was still shackled by the metal bands that thwarted his teleportation. There was nothing to aid him in his plight, and he doubted throwing his pillow at the girls would accomplish anything. It would just make them angry, more likely than not...
Kurt was shaken out of his desperate thoughts when he saw the two girls step through the door without opening it, like it was nothing more than so much fog. Both girls were wearing their pajamas, the brunette girl also wore a fuzzy pink bathrobe. She took away her left hand from where she had been lightly gripping the other girl's shoulder. She carried a bottle of water awkwardly tucked under her right arm, and a small paper parcel of something in her right hand. The girl with white bangs was carrying something that looked and smelled like a plate of food.
Kurt knew better than to believe that it was just a plate of food. Poisoned food, more likely, or perhaps some sort of elaborately designed gas bomb, set to go off when the girls left the room. He scrambled backwards as far away from the girls as he could before he came up against the wall.
"Hey, take it easy. I'm not here to touch you." The white-bangs girl offered quietly. The brunette girl hung back, peering at Kurt with curiosity and nervousness from over the other girl's shoulder.
White-bangs knelt on the floor before Kurt, and set down the suspiciously innocent plate of food. She carefully pushed the plate towards him with a sad smile.
"I thought you might want something to eat." White-bangs said by way of explanation.
The food filled Kurt's ravenous eyes, like there was nothing else in the world. He was hungry, very much so. But the real question was: could he trust the person who just gave him the food? Kurt somehow managed to tear his hungry eyes away from the food and focus on the girl kneeling in front of him. She met his gaze for a moment and looked away, absently twisting a lock of white hair around her fingers.
"Go on, it's not poisoned." She prompted quietly, as if reading his thoughts. She still looked away.
Kurt's sense of caution, wavering in the presence of the food that he wanted so much, was bolstered to some degree. White-bangs' words meant safety, but how did she know he was worried about poison unless she was reading his mind? If she was reading his mind, then clearly she was up to no more good than that madman Xavier. Aside from that, her body language was saying exactly the opposite of what her mouth did. Instead of looking him in the face she had turned her gaze elsewhere; to Kurt, that a sure sign that the white-bangs girl had something to hide. What if the food really was poisoned?
The white-bangs girl, seeing that he wasn't convinced, sighed sadly. After a moment she spoke again, still in that quiet voice.
"Here, I'll prove it," she said, and picked up a sandwich. She took a large bite out of it, chewing and swallowing in silence. She set it back down, and proceeded to do the same to the other two sandwiches. Kurt watched wordlessly, rather surprised at the girl's actions...Neither the white haired woman or Wolverine had done this when they brought food. He still expected her to keel over and die from poison; he wouldn't admit it, but some part of him was hoping she would leave enough food for him when she was done.
When the last sandwich had been put back on the plate, White-bangs spoke up again.
"See? No poison. I'm perfectly alright, and so will you be, too."
That was all the incentive Kurt's stomach needed. He leaned forward and grabbed the nearest sandwich, hungrily bolting it down in oversized bites like he hadn't eaten in days.
Yikes, what freaky hands.
Rogue shook her head angrily, trying to force the unwanted thoughts away. She focused on the food instead, and was surprised to see that the blue mutant had already started on the last sandwich. As the last few bites disappeared, she idly wondered if he burned off calories every time he teleported, for him to be so hungry. She suddenly realized that the blue mutant was staring her, silently waiting for her next move.
The Southern girl dropped her gaze under his scrutiny and shifted nervously. She noticed that the fruit hadn't been touched.
"It's all right...The fruit ain't poisoned, either," she prompted. After a moment's hesitation, the blue mutant picked up the apple and carefully sniffed it all over, like a cat examining a bowl of food that it wasn't accustomed to. Only after very careful examination did the blue mutant bite into the red fruit. In less than a minute only the stem and the seeds remained. The blue mutant was examining the banana in the same manner when Rogue remembered something. She turned to her brunette friend.
"Kitty, pass me the water and cookies," She said, or rather ordered. Kitty, moving in the blue mutant's direction somewhat reluctantly, handed Rogue the bottle of water and the little parcel, immediately stepping back once her hands were empty. Rogue turned backed to the blue mutant who, thankfully, had found the banana to be completely harmless and was now eating it. Rogue set down the bottle of water and the little parcel of cookies within easy reach of the blue mutant.
Kurt, without waiting for any further words from White-bangs, dropped the half eaten banana on the plate and grabbed the water bottle. He unscrewed the lid and only took a quick sniff before tipping the bottle up, draining it of its contents in five seconds flat.
White-bangs watched silently as he set the empty bottle down and picked up the banana again.
"I guess I should've brought more." White-bangs murmured absently. Kurt wasn't sure if she was talking about the water or the meal in general. Her voice sounded sad again, he noticed. Why did she sound so sad? He furrowed his brow in thought, trying to figure out why he cared if this girl were sad or not.
"Like, how much longer will this take? The sign says you're not supposed to feed the animals." The brunette girl's voice carried unmistakable derision that seemed to cut the air like a knife. It hard to believe that such a nice looking girl like her would speak that way on purpose.
Kurt couldn't help but flinch at the insult. He hid his face behind his hair, and the banana slipped out of his hand and fell to the floor, forgotten.
White-bangs noticed all of this, and her jaw tightened in anger.
"Kitty, why can't you just shut up!" she spat, turning towards the brunette girl and balling up her fists like she was ready for a fight.
The brunette girl huffed and turned away. She ignored the girl with white bangs, but Kurt didn't.
"What do you want?"
His voice felt rusty, like he hadn't used it for a long time. Rogue spun around at the sound of the blue mutant's words, muttered like he was speaking against his will.
"I…I just wanna talk." Rogue relaxed her hands, as she felt her spirits lift somewhat at the progress she was making. They fell again at the blue mutant's next words.
"Yeah right, and so does your professor." His tone was distant and quietly cynical. "Why won't you people just leave me alone?"
"Well…" Rogue took a deep breath, bracing herself for whatever reaction the blue mutant might have towards what she was going to say next. "Kurt…"
His head rose at the mention of his name, his eyes wide from surprise and fear.
"Kurt...I'm your sister."